Property Blog

6 Lies Commonly Told by Landlords

4 Comments Comments / Article written on 05 Feb 2010, and filed in the Tenant Advice section

1] “That will be fixed by the time you move in”
If you notice something broken or off-key during the viewing, ensure it’s attended to before you sign any contracts, pay any deposits or agree to anything.
Once you’ve moved in, the landlord will be more reluctant to get things fixed because he already has you [...]

Do You Have A Useful Service To Offer Landlords? Advertise it for FREE

4 Comments Comments / Article written on 01 Feb 2010, and filed in the Ranting Landlord section

Some of you may have noticed a new sponsor advert on the right hand sidebar, “Your local Landlord Directory”, while the rest of you probably didn’t care enough to notice. Either way, I’m magnifying the subject and bringing it all to your attention

Landlord Directory is a new portal specifically for landlords. Essentially, it’s [...]

I Hope All Estate Agents Aren’t This Unfunny

1 Comment Comments / Article written on 30 Jan 2010, and filed in the I Dislike Estate Agents section

I know a lot of people dislike me and my blog because of the kind of crap I dispose on here, which is totally cool by me. To each their own and all that fluff.
On a few occasions I’ve seen some of the haters write some funny shit about me and my beautiful cesspit of [...]

Estate Agent Walks Into Property And Takes Viewings Without Notifying Tenant

3 Comments Comments / Article written on 25 Jan 2010, and filed in the I Dislike Estate Agents section

Right, so this is what happened today on this miserable Monday. A work colleague of mine received an alarming phone call this afternoon from his heavily pregnant wife. She had called in a panic to inform him that an estate agent had opened the front door (with keys) to take a viewing of the [...]

Are You Dealing With Rogue Letting Agents? Get In Touch

2 Comments Comments / Article written on 13 Jan 2010, and filed in the I Dislike Estate Agents section

If you’re dealing with rogue letting agents, or have done so in the past, please contact Claer Barrett (claer.barrett@ft.com).
Earlier this week Claer left a comment on one of my blog posts (Is Your Letting Agent Holding Deposits Or Failing To Pass On Rent?):

Any landlords who want me to investigate rogue lettings agents in a [...]

Same Libel Threat, Different Person Threatening Me

25 Comments Comments / Article written on 12 Jan 2010, and filed in the Ranting Landlord section

Urgh, it’s happening again! This is the 4th incident where I’ve been told to remove content from my site because it’s supposedly libellous. It’s like Groundhog day, because the threats are always so ridiculous and petty, in my opinion.
The latest episode is actually the most flimsy libel notice I’ve ever received. At least the others [...]

Landlord Junk I Want To Achieve In 2010

11 Comments Comments / Article written on 04 Jan 2010, and filed in the Ranting Landlord section

Happy New Year, folks! I hope you all had a great transition.
So, it’s a New Year and people are beginning their journeys to fulfil their resolutions. Great!
I never really set New Year resolutions because they don’t make any practical sense to me. If I need to change something in my life, I’ll change it there [...]

Common Misconception: Rent Is Guaranteed With DSS Tenants

8 Comments Comments / Article written on 29 Dec 2009, and filed in the DSS Tenants section

I’ve heard a lot of people claiming that rent is guaranteed when Housing Benefit (HB) pay rent directly to the landlord on behalf of DSS tenants. It was actually the other day that someone on my blog made that statement, and it’s definitely a popular claim I’ve heard many times. For the record, the lady [...]

Shit You shouldn’t Write Or Put In Your Tenant’s Christmas Card

6 Comments Comments / Article written on 21 Dec 2009, and filed in the Good & Bad Landlord Practices section

In my previous blog post I asked the question, are you going to bother sending your tenant a Christmas card. Continuing on with my run of festive blog posts, I’m now going to discuss what you shouldn’t say/put in your tenant’s Christmas card.
I’m sure it’s a common problem thousands of landlords face on a [...]

Are You Going To Bother Sending Your Tenant A Christmas Card?

10 Comments Comments / Article written on 17 Dec 2009, and filed in the Ranting Landlord section

Urgh, great, it’s Christmas again, ALREADY. Ho, ho, ho.
Ok, I’m not a Scrooge; I’m just at that awkward stage in my life where Christmas seems pointless. I’ve always believed that Christmas is pretty cool for grandparents, parents and children. I’m neither, so I view this time of year as a bitterly cold season where cab [...]

What Landlords Should Know About ‘White Goods’

4 Comments Comments / Article written on 14 Dec 2009, and filed in the Landlord Legal Obligations/Issues section

I’ve been getting a few emails from folks regarding the details of “White goods”, so I thought I’d quickly jot down what I know about the issue. It’s not exactly the most exciting topic, but it’s an area worth knowing about if you’re a landlord.
What are “white goods”?
White goods refer to large electrical home appliances [...]

The Penalties For Breaking Landlord Laws

1 Comment Comments / Article written on 08 Dec 2009, and filed in the Landlord Legal Obligations/Issues section

Landlord law is a pretty gray area from what I’ve noticed over the years, as in, penalties always seem to differ, even if the crimes being committed are similar to one another. But it does make sense, because in almost every legal battle, the circumstances between tenant and landlord or landlord and property are pretty [...]

Is Your Letting Agent Holding Deposits Or Failing To Pass On Rent?

16 Comments Comments / Article written on 30 Nov 2009, and filed in the Landlord Legal Obligations/Issues section

Before you get bent out of shape and start raging at your tenant for failing to pass on rent, it’s probably best to make sure your tenant is the actual cock-face that is breaking the chain of making rental payments.
Recently a pompous-arse rogue letting agent in Oxfordshire was raided after several dozen landlords and tenants [...]

Assured Shorthold Tenancy Agreement (AST) Tips

7 Comments Comments / Article written on 23 Nov 2009, and filed in the Good & Bad Landlord Practices section

1] Length of tenancy
Don’t give a fixed term longer than 6 months unless you trust your tenants. You can always extend the contract when the fixed term has expired.
2] Signed tenancy agreements
Never allow a tenant to move into your property until the Assured Shorthold Tenancy Agreement (AST) is signed.
3] Keep an original copy
Hold an AST [...]

Estate Agents Are Slipperier Than A Lubed Penis

15 Comments Comments / Article written on 16 Nov 2009, and filed in the I Dislike Estate Agents section

Last year when I was looking for tenants I unleashed a snake-oil letting agency to assist me on the hunt. They used the usual marketing tactics- online property portals (i.e. Rightmove, Findaproperty etc.), their own shop window, the local newspaper and various other methods.
Fortunately, and rather satisfyingly, I managed to find better tenants than [...]

Interview With Ajay Ahuja

145 Comments Comments / Article written on 10 Nov 2009, and filed in the Ranting Landlord section

It was only last week that Ajay Ahuja appeared on “Inside Out” for allegedly being a dirty little scam artist. Since then his name has been running riot on the property circuit. While he’s still hot topic, I thought I’d try and get my filthy little mitts on him; giving him the opportunity to [...]

Ajay Ahuja On Inside Out, London- Property Scam

18 Comments Comments / Article written on 04 Nov 2009, and filed in the Ranting Landlord section

Anyone watch “Inside Out, London” On BBC, Monday (2nd November, 2009)? It was rather interesting.
The first half of the show was an investigation about a property dealer offering bargains that are apparently too good to be true. It was quite amusing when the “dealer” they were investigating turned out to be someone I know, or [...]

My Stupid Landlord-Friend Didn’t Transfer All Utility Bills Over To Her Tenant

6 Comments Comments / Article written on 02 Nov 2009, and filed in the Good & Bad Landlord Practices section

My Stupid Landlord-Friend Didn’t Transfer All Utility Bills Over To Her Tenant
It’s ok, I can safely call her stupid because…

a) She ignored my advice (Transfer Utility Services Over To Your New Tenants)
b) She was careless
c) She’s my friend
d) She’s a girl- I’m way more powerful than her

Whenever a landlord gets a new tenant that [...]

I Don’t Like Globrix Property Portal

8 Comments Comments / Article written on 29 Oct 2009, and filed in the Ranting Landlord section

Anyone used Globrix before?
Earlier today I was planning on using Globrix to check out the local talent on the market. Unfortunately, my plans quickly came to a halt when I realised Globrix is a pile of unusable crap.
I can’t decide whether the site was designed by a genius or an idiot. My money is on [...]

Idiot Tenant Sets Fire To Property- What To Do?

7 Comments Comments / Article written on 26 Oct 2009, and filed in the Landlord Legal Obligations/Issues section

I came across an interesting thread on the Property Tribes forum earlier. A landlord had her property accidently set on fire by her tenant, to the point where it became uninhabitable. Here’s how the landlord explained it:

Yesterday one of my tenants ran out of electric on her meter and rather than topping up the card, [...]

100 Per Cent Mortgages

0 Comments Comments / Article written on 21 Oct 2009, and filed in the Property Comic Sketches section

Minimizing Landlord Maintenance Costs

0 Comments Comments / Article written on 20 Oct 2009, and filed in the Landlord Money & Saving Costs section

Continuing from my previous blog post on landlord maintenance costs (How Much I’ve Spent On Maintenance Costs Over The Years As A landlord) I’m going to quickly ramble on about how I try to minimize maintenance costs (real exciting stuff, brace yourself for mental ejaculation). I think this may be an area where a lot [...]

The Council Are So Shit To Landlords With Problem DSS Tenants (Part 2)

10 Comments Comments / Article written on 13 Oct 2009, and filed in the DSS Tenants section

I say “part 2″ because I’ve previously thrown my toys out of the pram over this shitty little issue, DSS Tenants And The Shitty Council. I’m writing about it again for 2 reasons. Firstly, the issue still frustrates the fuck out of me, and secondly, I’ve recently been reminded of how incompetent and lackadaisical the [...]

How Much I’ve Spent On Maintenance Costs Over The Years As A landlord

12 Comments Comments / Article written on 07 Oct 2009, and filed in the Landlord Money & Saving Costs section

There was an interesting/good question asked in the forum yesterday,

what kind of maintenance costs landlords have had to pay over the years?

Fortunately, over the last 5 years of maintaining 3-4 properties, I haven’t had to dig too deep to cover maintenance costs (from what I can remember). And in most cases, where I have [...]

List Of FREE Goodies For Landlords

1 Comment Comments / Article written on 04 Oct 2009, and filed in the Landlord Money & Saving Costs section

Last week I wrote an article covering a list of Ways Landlords Can Market Their BTL Property For Free, so to keep on track with the FREE theme (because everyone likes free stuff), I’m going to write a list of free goodies available for landlords…
Free Tenancy Agreements

The Tenancy Agreement I use.

Tenancy Agreement by Letting Expert

Tenancy [...]

I Haven’t Protected My Tenants Deposit Into A Scheme With In 14 Days

1 Comment Comments / Article written on 02 Oct 2009, and filed in the Landlord Legal Obligations/Issues section

I received this email earlier today. It’s an interesting question, with a rather ropey answer (which works in the favour of the landlord):

I have one property. My tenant has been with me for the last 2 years. Initially via an agent. Agents were charging a fortune and were no good, so I took it on [...]

17 Ways Landlords Can Market Their BTL Property For Free

8 Comments Comments / Article written on 01 Oct 2009, and filed in the Marketing & Finding Tenants section

1] Landlord Portals
Here’s A List Of Free Websites Where Landlords Can Advertise Their BTL
2] Leaflets and Flyers
Get creative on your PC and create a simple leaflet that you can post through local mail boxes. Keep it simple, don’t try to be Leonardo De Vinci, you will only screw it up.
3] Word of mouth
Use that irritating, [...]

Reader Requests I Remove Article Where I Call My Tenant A Bitch

3 Comments Comments / Article written on 28 Sep 2009, and filed in the I Get Hate Mail For Being A Landlord section

The other day I received a laughable email from a disgruntled reader called Sophie. I don’t usually humour myself on other people’s misery, but this unreasonable woman was being ridiculous, consequently my angelic laughter was my retort for her. She requested for me to remove one of my articles because it personally offended her. If [...]

New Property Investment Project Business Cards

6 Comments Comments / Article written on 23 Sep 2009, and filed in the Ranting Landlord section

Right, so here are the facts…

My blog is growing on a daily basis (I think)
I get various property-related companies and professionals emailing me all kinds of shit on a daily basis
I don’t run my blog as a “business” per’se, but some people tell me I probably should
I sometimes (rarely) attend networking events
I’m not professional at [...]

When The Tenant Doesn’t Pay Rent

4 Comments Comments / Article written on 22 Sep 2009, and filed in the Evicting Tenants section

I can’t remember why or how, but i’m thanking fate for the cinematic treasure I stumbled upon earlier today. I came accross a hilarious Will Ferrell sketch, which you can watch below.
Ferrell plays a tenant that can’t pay his rent on time, as a result, his frustrated landlord, Pearl, doesn’t take the news lightly, consequently [...]

A List Of Tenant Eviction Professionals

0 Comments Comments / Article written on 17 Sep 2009, and filed in the Evicting Tenants section

In the past, I’ve been mere whiskers away from stampeding into one of my BTLs’ with the incentives of throwing a tenant and all her belongings onto the street because she had fallen into 3 months of arrears. Looking back, it was a miracle that she wasn’t limping around with my foot firmly wedged up [...]

Make Your Own ‘To Let’ Sign To Help Market Your Property

0 Comments Comments / Article written on 14 Sep 2009, and filed in the Marketing & Finding Tenants section

I recently read an article on the Telegraph website about a vendor trying to unload his £30million mansion. For some reason the vendor chose to neglect the expertise of an agent, consequently independently took charge of the marketing.
Estate agency fees are usually about 2.5 per cent; by marketing the property without instructing an agent, the [...]

Which Is The Best Landlords Association? Which Should I Join?

8 Comments Comments / Article written on 09 Sep 2009, and filed in the Good & Bad Landlord Practices section

I’ve been thinking about joining a Landlords Association for a while, but I’ve never actually gotten around to doing it. But I’m definitely going to join one this week, it’s just a case of choosing the right one. Decisions, decisions…
For those blissfully unaware, let me go over the basics…
What is a Landlords Association?
They’re basically resourceful [...]

How To Advertise Your BTL For Tenants On The Biggest Property Portals Online

10 Comments Comments / Article written on 07 Sep 2009, and filed in the Marketing & Finding Tenants section

I recently compiled a list of A List Of Free Websites Where Landlords Can Advertise Their BTL. While that list is a super awesome resource for all landlands trying to find tenants for free, there is one fundamental problem with the websites on that list. The websites don’t actually generate as much traffic as the [...]

London Landlord Show 2009, Who’s Attending? Anyone?

3 Comments Comments / Article written on 04 Sep 2009, and filed in the Ranting Landlord section

It’s FREE, it’s LOCAL (London is local for me) and it could be quite interesting, so I think I’m going to attend this landlord bash. Who knows, I may even learn something useful.
Event details

London Landlords’ Show is the largest show of its kind and to celebrate its tenth year, the show returns to London Olympia [...]

Landlord Guide To Marketing A BTL Property From Start To Finish

0 Comments Comments / Article written on 04 Sep 2009, and filed in the Marketing & Finding Tenants section

This flow chart shows the typical steps new landlords take to find tenants, and displays the routes/options available, highlighting the pros and & cons of each route. Bear in mind, some of the steps are legal requirements!
If anyone disagrees with this chart, or believes it can be improved, please let me know, and I’ll happily [...]

Landlord Guide On Evicting Tenants

1 Comment Comments / Article written on 30 Aug 2009, and filed in the Evicting Tenants section

Here are the steps a landlord typically takes during the process of evicting tenants. The chart doesn’t reflect every open option available; the chart displays the most common options and solutions, along with the pros and cons of each possible route.
If anyone disagrees with this chart, or believes it can be improved, please let me [...]

The Lost Art Of Being Polite

8 Comments Comments / Article written on 27 Aug 2009, and filed in the Ranting Landlord section

Just to warn you all, this post has nothing to do with property or being a landlord. This is about me throwing my toys out of the pram due to the lack of manners some people seem to have. While you won’t directly learn how to be a better landlord from this, some of you [...]

Sarah Beeny Boob Competition- Win Her Latest Property Book

9 Comments Comments / Article written on 25 Aug 2009, and filed in the Sarah Beeny section

Yup, it’s that time again. I’m giving away another copy of Sarah Beeny’s latest property book, “Property Ladder- Sarah Beeny’s Design For Profit” For more details about the book go here, Sarah Beeny’s Latest Book.
The last few competitions have been pretty successful- people seem to love the Beeny and her expert advice (or the pictures [...]

Guide On Picking The Right Letting Agent

3 Comments Comments / Article written on 23 Aug 2009, and filed in the Good & Bad Landlord Practices section

I’ve had experiences with about 4 or 5 different letting agents, so I know how important it is to pick the best out of a rotten bunch. The consequences of working with the wrong letting agent can be on the same par as a slow and painful death, if not worse. That’s precisely why it’s [...]